Virginia Cares

What Virginia Cares does

Virginia CARES (Community Action Re-Entry System, Inc.) is a private nonprofit organization founded on January 1, 1981, and headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia. It operates as the statewide coordinating network for the PAPIS Coalition — a consortium of nine community-based nonprofits funded by the Virginia General Assembly through the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS). The organization delivers pre-release services (assessments, reentry planning, life skills training, mentoring) inside 14 Virginia prisons, 9 city/county jails, and 6 regional jails, and post-release case management across 26 cities/towns and 32 counties. Its primary program offerings include The Carey Guides (an evidence-based cognitive-behavioral curriculum), Job Readiness Workshops, Peer/Educational Workshops, and the WINGS Program (a gender-responsive reentry track for women in Roanoke). Since 1981, Virginia CARES reports having served more than 104,000 returning citizens, with a pilot-proven 7% recidivism rate versus a 28.3% statewide average at its Roanoke site in FY 2011-2012.

The organization's revenue model is grant-funded and donation-supported, with no commercial pricing, subscription tiers, or fees charged to program participants. Primary funding flows from Virginia General Assembly appropriations via DCJS, supplemented by federal grants from the Department of Corrections, Department of Social Services (Community Services Block Grant), Department of Justice (Byrne Funds, Second Chance Act/Bureau of Justice Assistance), and Department of Labor. Private and philanthropic contributions — individual, business, and organizational donations — provide secondary support, with historical foundation funding from the Ford Foundation and Appalachian Community Fund. As of its most recent disclosed figure, Virginia CARES operates on a $1.2 million annual budget with 23 staff across 8 regional sites. Leadership transitioned on July 1, 2025, with Anthony West elevated from Deputy Director to Executive Director and Aisha Bailey promoted to Deputy Director. The organization is governed by a Board of Directors representing public, private, and low-income constituencies, and operates without parent company affiliation or external institutional ownership.

Name

Virginia Cares

Legal name

Virginia Community Action Reentry System

Website

https://vacares.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Virginia CARES is a 1981-founded, Roanoke-based nonprofit operating as the statewide coordinating network for the PAPIS Coalition, delivering pre- and post-release reentry services to formerly incarcerated individuals across 43 Virginia localities through 14 prisons, 15 jails, and community-based case management.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Offender Reentry Services

NAICS

Health Care and Social Assistance (62), Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Correctional Health, Mental Health & Substance Abuse Services (In-Custody) (BPAKANAG)

Keywords

• Reentry services
• Offender rehabilitation
• Community action
• Criminal justice support
• Returning citizens

Headquarters

HQ city

Roanoke

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Grants and Appropriations: Virginia CARES receives primary funding through the Virginia General Assembly, appropriated via the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) as part of the PAPIS Coalition. Additional federal funding includes Department of Social Services Community Services Block Grant, Department of Justice Byrne Funds, Bureau of Justice Assistance Second Chance Act grants, Department of Labor, and Department of Corrections reentry funds.
2. Private and Philanthropic Contributions: The organization accepts individual, business, and organizational donations via its website and mail. Past private funders include Ford Foundation and Appalachian Community Fund.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Virginia CARES is a statewide network providing reentry services to formerly incarcerated individuals in Virginia. It delivers pre-release programming inside correctional facilities (assessments, reentry planning, life skills training, mentoring) and post-release community-based case management (job readiness, cognitive-behavioral programming via The Carey Guides, counseling, and referrals to housing, food, clothing, transportation, and substance abuse treatment). Services are delivered free of charge to program participants.

Product overview

Virginia CARES operates as a unified service organization offering pre-release and post-release reentry support programs across Virginia. The organization provides pre-release services in prisons and jails (assessments, reentry planning, life skills training, mentoring) and post-release programs including job readiness training, cognitive-behavioral programming via The Carey Guides, counseling, and connections to essential resources (housing, food, clothing, transportation). The WINGS Program offers specialized gender-responsive services for women. Job Readiness Workshops and Peer/Educational Workshops serve as core service delivery mechanisms. Virginia CARES functions as a single integrated service model rather than a platform with modular add-ons.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pre-Release Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 7% recidivism vs. 28.3% statewide average in a Roanoke site pilot (FY 2011-2012)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

20 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• PAPIS Coalition (Pre- and Post-Incarceration Services)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVirginia CARES is a member of the PAPIS Coalition, a statewide network of nine community-based nonprofits funded by the Virginia General Assembly through DCJS. Since the early 1970s, PAPIS organizations have provided reentry services to help individuals transition from incarceration back into communities. Virginia CARES serves as a lead agency within this coalition.
• Department of Corrections (Virginia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVirginia DOC has partnered with Virginia CARES since 2005 for reentry programming. The DOC refers individuals to pre-release services and provides institutional access for program delivery in state prisons.
• OAR-ArlingtoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPAPIS Coalition member providing pre-release services in Arlington County Detention Center, Alexandria Detention Center, and Coffeewood Correctional Center; post-release services to Arlington, Alexandria, and Falls Church.
• OAR-FairfaxcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPAPIS Coalition member providing pre-release services in Fairfax Adult Detention Center, AIB, Loudoun and Prince William Adult Detention Centers; post-release to Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William, Fairfax City, and Manassas.
• OAR-RichmondcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPAPIS Coalition member providing pre-release services in Chesterfield County Jail, Henrico Regional East and West Jails, Richmond Justice Center, and Pamunkey Regional Jail; post-release to Richmond, Ashland, and surrounding counties.
• STEP-UP, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPAPIS Coalition member serving Hampton Roads region, providing pre-release in Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Virginia Beach City Jails, and Hampton Roads Regional Jail; post-release across 9 cities and 4 counties.
• Colonial Community Corrections Transitional ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPAPIS Coalition member providing pre-release at Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail and post-release services to James City, Poquoson, Williamsburg, and York counties.
• Northern Neck Regional Jail Reentry & Transition ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPAPIS Coalition member providing pre-release at Northern Neck Regional Jail and post-release to Essex, Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond County, and Westmoreland counties.
• Northwestern Regional Adult Detention CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPAPIS Coalition member providing pre-release services at Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center in Winchester, VA.
• OAR-Jefferson Area Community CorrectionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPAPIS Coalition member providing pre-release at Albemarle/Charlottesville Regional Jail, Central Virginia Regional Jail, and Piedmont Halfway House; post-release across Albemarle, Fluvanna, Goochland, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Orange, Nelson counties, and Charlottesville.
• LOC Family ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity-based reentry services provider in Farmville, Virginia, part of Virginia CARES' statewide network. Contact: Shelley Mays-Couch.
• People Inc. (Abingdon & Fredericksburg)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity action agency providing VA CARES case management and reentry services at locations in Abingdon and Fredericksburg, VA. Multiple award winners (Tedlich, Rosana Anderson, Lin Edlich) have come from People Inc. sites.
• Goodwill Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGoodwill WIOA program partnered with Virginia CARES to provide paid internship work experiences for returning citizens, such as Holland Davy's internship at New River Community Action.
• New River Community ActioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional CAA partner in the New River Valley, delivering VA CARES services. Has produced multiple success stories and award nominees including the Cindy Martin Award.
• WINGS Program (Roanoke)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProgram under Virginia CARES network providing interpersonal development and reentry support for women in Roanoke, VA. Produced 2025 Cindy Martin Award recipient Brittany Boyd-McNeal.
• Total Action for Progress (TAP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOriginal founding partner of Virginia CARES (then Total Action Against Poverty), launching StopGap Jobs in the late 1970s and the first pre-release program at Botetourt Correctional Unit #25 in 1978. Continues as a CAA partner providing VA CARES services in Covington.
• HRCAP (Hampton Roads Community Action Partnership)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHampton Roads CAA providing VA CARES services. Produced 2023-2024 Cindy Martin nominee Christopher Gatlin and offers wraparound services including SSVF (Supportive Services for Veteran Families).
• Lynchburg Virginia Community ActioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional CAA partner providing VA CARES services in the Lynchburg area. Produced 2023-2024 Cindy Martin nominee Chase Irvin.
• Pittsylvania County Community ActioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional CAA partner providing VA CARES services in Pittsylvania County. Produced 2023-2024 Cindy Martin nominee Stacy Bohannon.
• Causeway Community ActioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional CAA partner. Its VA Cares Program Coordinator Shannon Lowery received VA Cares Site of the Year Award in 2017 and 2023.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Offender Aid and Restoration (OAR) of Arlington: PAPIS Coalition member delivering pre-release and post-release services in Northern Virginia. Operates in the same Virginia reentry ecosystem, shares DCJS funding through the same appropriations line, and competes for the same returning-citizen population.
• People Inc. (Virginia): Community action agency providing VA CARES case management in Abingdon and Fredericksburg. Direct coalition partner running the same model in the same region under the same PAPIS funding umbrella.
• STEP-UP, Inc. (Hampton Roads): PAPIS Coalition member serving Hampton Roads with reentry services in city jails and the regional jail. Comparable mission, funding source, and service mix to Virginia CARES across a distinct Virginia region.
• Root & Rebound: California-based reentry legal and reentry support nonprofit. Comparable in mission and mid-size scale (single-state footprint, multi-service model); useful analog for statewide reentry capacity without Virginia's jail/prison embeddedness.
• Hope for Prisoners: Nevada-based reentry nonprofit providing pre-release mentoring and post-release case management. Comparable single-state, multi-service delivery model with documented recidivism-reduction outcomes.

Broad incumbents

• The Fortune Society: New York-based reentry nonprofit offering pre-release, post-release, housing, education, and workforce services. Comparable comprehensive reentry model at substantially larger scale; sets the national benchmark for community-based reentry organizations.
• Safer Foundation: Chicago-based reentry services nonprofit providing employment, education, and case management to returning citizens. Operates a multi-site statewide model analogous to Virginia CARES' PAPIS Coalition footprint.
• Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO): National employment-focused reentry nonprofit operating across multiple states. Directly comparable service mix to Virginia CARES' job readiness workshops, career counseling, and employment placement components.

Emerging players

• Defy Ventures: National reentry nonprofit focused on entrepreneurship and economic mobility for formerly incarcerated individuals. Comparable target population and pre/post-release model, but with a distinct entrepreneurial-instead-of-job-readiness emphasis.

Others

• Total Action for Progress (TAP): Virginia community action agency and founding partner of Virginia CARES (originally Total Action Against Poverty). Connected via co-delivery of VA CARES services in Covington and shared Roanoke-area workforce infrastructure, rather than direct reentry competition.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Virginia Cares